Tablet for kids – when the regular Fire is better than Kids Edition

If you purchase an item through this post, we may get a small affiliate commission.

Amazon Fire Kids Edition is a tablet addressed to children / Photo: Amazon

Do you consider buying an Amazon Fire tablet for your child? Read on, and you’ll see whether you need the Kids Edition at all.

Amazon does a really good work in tailoring its devices to particular needs. You’ve probably seen already special editions and bundles based on Kindle or Fire devices. Kindle for Kids Bundle, Kindle Voyage Essentials Bundle, remember?

The idea of bundling a few items into a single product that answers common needs is brilliant. It simplifies the buying process while giving a chance to save money. What’s most important, the bundle or special edition is always cheaper than the sum of its elements.

One of the most known bundles based on Amazon devices is Fire Kids Edition – a special version of the Fire tablet that is addressed to children – or rather to parents who want to buy the tablet for their children.

What is Fire Kids Edition?

Amazon Fire Kids Edition is Fire tablet specially enhanced for the use by children. Besides the device, it includes a kid-proof case, special no-questions-asked guarantee, and one year of free access to a special catalog of books, games, and videos for kids.

Let’s have a closer look at the elements.

1. Fire tablet

It’s always the latest-generation tablet from Amazon. The Kids Edition is usually launched at the same time as the regular version.

Currently, two Fire models are used for Kids Edition: Fire 7, and Fire HD 8. The biggest Fire HD 10 doesn’t come in a kid-friendly edition.

An important thing to know is that Kids Edition uses the most expensive version of the relevant Fire tablet, the one without special offers and with the bigger internal memory.

It’s a simple, rugged case with a curved shape that makes it easy to keep in small hands. It’s made from a lightweight, durable, kid-safe material, and provides basic protection against bumps and dust.

The case comes in three bright colors: Pink, Yellow, and Blue. You can buy it separately for $24.99 (it never gets a price cut) – and it’s available in two more colors: Punch Red and Black.

3. Two-year worry-free guarantee

It’s the biggest benefit of the Kids Edition. This guarantee enables you to return the broken tablet as many times as you need, and no questions will be asked.

The guarantee provides coverage for anything that happens to your Fire Kids Edition including electrical and mechanical breakdowns.

The regular Fire tablet comes by default with 90-day limited warranty and service. You can add a protection plan by SquareTrade, which enables you to make up to 3 claims. The 1-year plan costs $10.99. For two years, you’ll pay $14.99.

4. One year of FreeTime Unlimited at no extra cost

Amazon FreeTime Unlimited is an all-in-one subscription for children that offers unlimited access to over 13,000 kid-friendly books, videos, educational apps, and games.

If you buy Fire Kids Edition, you get the first year of FreeTime Unlimited for free.

Then, if you want to continue, you’ll pay $2.99 per month. You can also choose a pre-paid yearly subscription. Family Plan for Prime members is $83 per year. For non-Prime users, it’s $119.

When you don’t need Fire Kids Edition

Having learned about the benefits and features of Fire Kids Edition tablets, let’s see whether you and your kids need all of it.

Below, you’ll see a list of circumstances that are not in favor of the Fire Kids Edition. The more “ifs” you agree with, the less you need a special kid-friendly edition.

When it comes to damage, a worry-free guarantee gives parents the peace of mind.

On the other hand, some parents don’t want to leave their children unassisted for a long time. A tablet is a great way to spend time together with kids – read an ebook, play a game, or watch a movie. In this case, a parent gives better protection than any worry-free plan.

When it comes to heavy content use, FreeTime Unlimited sounds like a great option. Giving access to kid-friendly content doesn’t, however, mean your kid will want to keep trying new things for months on end.

Sometimes, a few great apps can take most of your child’s attention, so why pay for thousands of others?

If you want to control what content your kid is using

The first thing you should check out when the tablet for your kid arrives is parental controls. The regular version of the Fire has them too.

Turn the parental control on, and you’ll prevent your child from buying anything. It will also prevent your child from accessing adult content. A passcode only you know will be needed to unlock the content.

If your kid wants to get a new game, she or he will come and ask you to buy it – and you will see what your child is interested in.

If you assume the tablet will be in use for less than two years

Tablets become a fast-moving product category. New generations are introduced every year.

What’s even more important is that children grow quicker than technology. In half a year it may turn out your daughter doesn’t want the tablet because “this Pink case is so childish.”

Also, at some point, when you’ll need to replace the device for the second or third time, you may realize that maybe it’s a better idea to buy the next-generation tablet, as it’s faster and sports more advanced features.

So, if you assume, it’ll be great if the tablet is used by your kids until next holiday season, why pay for a 2-year worry-free guarantee? Its cost is calculated into the price of Fire Kids Edition, right?

If you don’t like the default case

The case included in the Fire Kids Edition is not waterproof. It also doesn’t provide the stand functionality.

Some third-party cases could be better suited if you want to give your child a more functional tablet that’s better tailored to the needs of your family.

For instance, Poetic TurtleSkin Rugged Case for Fire 7 includes a portable stand which makes it much easier to watch videos. It also has a unique corner protection with perforated shock absorber design and offers a sound-amplification feature. You can have it for $12.99.

If you prefer a memory card

A memory of the Fire tablet can be extended by memory card / Photo: Amazon

All Fire tablets have microSD card slot. You can expand their memory by more than 200 GB.

A memory card is a more flexible way to manage the tablet’s memory. You can use it in several devices – the one you currently own and the one you will buy next year.

Therefore, anyone who prefers a microSD card to internal memory would go for the cheapest possible version of the Fire tablet.

But the Fire Kids Edition includes the most expensive one.

Conclusion

To bring the overview to a simple cost comparison, you can buy the Fire 7 Kids Edition for $99.99, or you can buy the regular Fire 7 for half the price ($49.99) – and add extra elements to suit your kids more than a fixed solution.

Gift ideas

Here are case elegant but affordable covers and sleeves designed by third-party producers to fit Kindle Oasis e-reader (second generation, released in 2017). They are a great alternative to the original Amazon Origami stand case.

Premium sleeves for iPad Pro 10.5 and 12.9, hand-crafted from genuine leather and natural felt. Options with or without Apple Pencil holder, for iPad with Smart Cover and Smart Keyboard. Personalization options are available.

Best short books you can read in less than three hours. Novels and novellas you can’t miss, short stories, and most interesting non-fiction books.

Get free updates via email

Email address (required)

First name

Last name

Tips, lists, infographics, and fun stuff for ebook lovers. Delivered once a month. After you click the "Subscribe" button, you will be able to confirm your subscription, as well as control all marketing permissions.

Powered by MailChimp - a leading marketing automation platform and an email marketing service trusted by millions.

Honorable mentions

Partner sites

Read on any device

You can read Ebook Friendly not only on a computer, but also a tablet or smartphone. No matter whether you use Facebook on the iPad or Twitter on your Android phone, our site loads fast and is easy to read.

Cookie policy

We are using cookies to give you the best possible experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Find out more here.